James “Rhodey” Rhodes may not be the most famous character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. But Tony Stark’s companion, also known as War Machine, is one of the founders of the immensely successful film series: Rhodey has been part of the MCU since ‘Iron Man’ and therefore since the opening film.
However, the battle-hardened hero has undergone a change of actors: in “Iron Man”, Rhodey was played by Terrence Howard, the star of “Big Mama’s House”. Since “Iron Man 2” Don Cheadle has played the role. And he had shockingly little time to think about whether he wanted to follow in Howard’s footsteps: Cheadle was given just two hours to weigh things up – and then only because of external circumstances…
The MCU’s first Rhodey
The Marvel Cinematic Universe presented Robert Downey Jr. as his first hero to an enthusiastic audience. But In a sense, Rhodey was actually the first MCU hero, and not Iron Man, aka Tony Stark:
Terrence Howard was signed on for his supporting role in Iron Man before any other relevant character was cast. Director Jon Favreau chose Howard because he was confident he could develop Rhodey into a convincing War Machine in a sequel.
Because of his early casting, and because Downey, who was still recovering from a career break, was seen by some as a liability, Howard was actually the highest-paid name in the cast of “Iron Man.”. When preparations for the sequel started, the numbers were again juggled behind the scenes.
Downey was set to receive a significantly higher compensation than for the first installment, but Marvel decision makers wanted to save money elsewhere. According to Howard, this meant a huge cut in his salary: Marvel only offered him an eighth of what he received for “Iron Man” for the sequel – at least that’s what the actor claimed in the TV format “” (through ).
It’s unclear if this was a deliberate, strategic move to get Howard out of the MCU or if Marvel really hoped the actor would stay on board. Anyway: Howard and Marvel Studios went their separate ways after ‘Iron Man’ – and a replacement was needed.
Don Cheadle enters the Marvel Cinematic Universe
After the business relationship between Marvel Studios and Terrence Howard ended, a quick search was conducted for a new Rhodey cast. Very quickly, in fact, as Cheadle can attest. In an interview with He revealed that he received the call from Marvel during one of his children’s birthday parties – and that he immediately needed time:
“They called and said, ‘This and that happens, we’re making you this offer. If you don’t say yes, we’ll ask someone else. This case will be handled very quickly. Why don’t you take an hour to decide if you want to participate?’” Cheadle responded that he couldn’t decide within an hour whether he wanted to do a six-picture deal. He also said he would prefer to know where the character is going.
However, according to Cheadle, Marvel blocked it and continued to insist that a decision had to be made within the hour. The ‘Traffic’ star then highlighted that he was currently in the middle of a round of laser tag at a children’s birthday party, which meant that Marvel suddenly accommodated him: so he was given two hours to think about it.
Famously, he agreed – and has since played Rhodey in seven films and three TV series. With ‘Armor Wars’ another film is planned – this time with Cheadle in the leading role, after he otherwise only played Rhodey as a supporting or even peripheral character.